Lisa Ryan/INSIDER I recently made the trek from New York City to Entebbe, Uganda, which entailed nearly 24 hours of travel both ways — in economy class.

Prior to this, the most time I'd ever spent on an airplane for a single trip was only nine hours, so I wasn't entirely thrilled at the idea of being stuck in coach for so long. That is, until I discovered that I'd be flying Emirates.

Emirates was recently named the best airline in the world for 2016 by the leading consumer aviation website Skytrax. It's the fourth year in the row that the airline received the honor. So of course, I assumed I'd be flying to Uganda in style.

But I realized that flying coach on Emirates is basically the same as flying on any other airline. I was cramped and uncomfortable, and couldn't wait to land.

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This is what I had imagined my Emirates experience would be like: showers, bars, and Jennifer Aniston.

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But of course, I was flying economy class for my 12-and-a-half hour flight to Dubai.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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Coach looks a lot different than the luxe first class cabin from the commercial.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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My seat came with a pillow, headphones, a blanket and a small mystery case — but not much leg room.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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I was pleased to find that inside the mystery case was a toothbrush, tooth paste, ear plugs, socks and an eye mask.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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But what I really could have used was more space.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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On the plus side, economy class came with an epic movie library, including all of the Star Wars films.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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The bathroom looked just like any other airline bathroom, though.

Here I am, in the bathroom.
Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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And the food was... okay. Nothing to write home about.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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I sat in my seat for over 12 hours, unable to sleep and feeling cramped, counting down the minutes until we'd reach Dubai.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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In the meantime, I ate some pizza.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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Eventually I reached Dubai... only to hop on a plane and have pretty much the same experience for another six hours.

Lisa Ryan/INSIDER

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So all in all, Emirates' economy class is fine, I guess, but it isn't much different from coach on any other airline.